I Want a Coyote T-Shirt

I recently

spent twenty minutes

researching the differences

between wolves of coyotes:

wolves are larger

coyotes appear on fewer truck stop t-shirts

coyotes are also anti-social

I assume their loner tendencies

signify a propensity

for deep thoughts

they also have bushier tails

on an evening run

through the endowment lands

I spotted a coyote

only thirty yards ahead of me

on the windy trail

it was jogging

ahead of me

so I matched its pace

to follow it

to get a better look

unfortunately

the coyote was startled

by my curiosity

and began running

so I ran too

soon the coyote

abandoned the trail

I couldn’t justify

trampling through the brush

and so gave up the chase

I only wish

I could have told the coyote

that I’d choose its shirt

over a wolf shirt

because I like bushy tails.